A site that has been vacant for years is now back under the control of the City of Calgary after plans for mixed-use development failed.
The land surrounding the Westbrook LRT station was sold by the city in 2016 to Calgary-based Matco Development, which at the time intended to redevelop the area into a site with residential, office and retail space.
This plan was never realized.
After selling the property eight years ago for $50.5 million, the city bought it back in January of this year for nearly $43 million.
The original purchase agreement included an option that allowed the city to repurchase the land.
In a statement to CBC News, the city said it had decided to buy back the property because a contractual construction obligation had not been fulfilled on time.
“Although the intent behind implementing the construction commitments is to encourage timely real estate development and support community goals such as economic investment, job creation, tax revenue and housing goals, in this case the intended timeline could not be met,” the city’s statement said.
In the statement, the city said the exact timeframe was confidential.
When asked for comment, Eileen Stan, Matco’s vice president of development, said the company agreed to the buyback and agreed with the city that the land would now be better off in other hands.
A four-acre parcel of land above and surrounding the West LRT line and Westbrook station was sold to Matco Development in 2016. The city bought it back in January of this year. (Google Maps)
The development site is located directly above and around the Westbrook LRT station, Calgary’s first underground station, which opened in 2012.
According to District Councillor Courtney Walcott, the city must take advantage of its proximity to a train station.
Rather than immediately reselling the land to another developer, Walcott would help the city seek strategic partnerships to ensure the greatest possible benefit is derived from the land, he says.
“I wasn’t there when the decision to sell was made, but I don’t want to see this happen again,” said Walcott, who represents District 8.
“Any time urban land is near a … transit station like this, it changes the dynamics that we have when we have control of the land.”
Most of the four-acre site at 17th Avenue and 33rd Street SW has lain unused since Ernest Manning High School was demolished to make way for the new West LRT line.
The city said the administration will review the current land use and layout plan, analyze market demand and marketability, and develop a strategy for future redevelopment of the property.
